Aqua class vs concierge vs verandah

[Avalon35]

We are new to Celebrity. I have been reading the board, but need advice. We are looking at the 14 day Eclipse southern Caribbean. The date we want to sail Aqua Class is sold out. It has been so highly touted, that it seems as though we should not book unless we can get Aqua Class. I have also read other recommendations as to simply book a verandah and not concierge. What we are trying to figure out is that for this length of a cruise, how do we handle not having Aqua Class…or does it not really matter? Some folks have stated to simply book the specialty restaurants. On a cruise this length what are your thoughts? What will we be missing if we can’t get Aqua Class? Should we try a different date? We like the Princess minisuites- so are these cabins smaller… and are Aqua class and verandah the same size? Thank you.

[Mr. Click]

On the S class ships the veranda, conceirge class and AQ cabins are the same size. On the M class ships the CC and AQ cabins are bigger. We have done the CC 3 twice, once on an a M class and once on an S Class. I won't spend the extra $$$ on S class again. I can't speak for AQ because we have no experience with it but lots of folks rave about dining in Blu. We have found the food in the MDR on Celebrity to be very nice. As nice as Blu sounds, I think I would enjoy taking some of that money and enjoying a specialty restaurant or two on the cruise.

[TeaBag]

The main reason, in our opinion, to book AQ is for Blu. We don't care about the Persian Gardens. Yes, we do like the water in the room each day also. The afternoon snacks and flavored tea we can do without. If you are set on the 14 day Eclipse where AQ is sold out, you could book a verandah and use the saved money to book Specialty restaurants. Or you could book the Ultimate Dining package for $29pp/day and that would allow you to eat all the time in Sp restaurants which some would say are much better than Blu. Since this is your first time on Celebrity, why not try the MDR and see what you think? We found the MDR on our last cruise (Solstice) to be excellent.

 

You could also watch your cruise if you are not past final payment day and see if there are any cancellations in AQ since you seem to be so taken with it. I hope this helps.

 

I'm sure you will enjoy your cruise whatever you decide.

[getaway101]

One of the things that would help me decide is if I am working toward another tier in the "Club" Captains Club you get more points if you book Concierge or Aqua class. I think its 3 pts per day for veranda but 5 pts per day for the other. :rolleyes:

[bphman]

I wouldn't give up on AQ. The inventory constantly opens up on Celebrity especially near final payment time. We loved Blu. It gave us a small ship experience on a large ship. We enjoyed the MDR on prior cruises but much prefer Blu. These cabins are much smaller that Princess minis. I don't think I would spend the extra money for CC unless you need the points for status.

[Ruthk]

I agree, inventory does open up and I am sure you will get Aqua in a couple of months. Now personally, Aqua is good, but not that great anymore. You are seated in a nice smaller dining room, but I found the food was also a bit hit or miss. I agree with what someone else said about trying the MDR and see what you think. I think the food in the MDR is very good and they have an excellent selection on their menu.

As for concierge level on the Eclipse - the best part is their cabins, I think, are in the best locations because they are close to the elevators so you don't have to walk that long hallways. We usually get a cabin right on the hump so we also get a larger balcony.

It has been years since I have been in a plain balcony but I understand there are some really well located cabins also.

Whatever you decide - I am sure you will like it. And you will absolutely love the S. Caribbean cruise on the Eclipse - wonderful agenda and an absolutely beautiful ship with great staff.

[phoenix_dream]

Aqua class is a concept that is relatively new to Celebrity. It is very nice, and personally I like Blu a lot. That said, I started cruising Celebrity in 1992, way before any of today's ship were even built (except for the Century). Celebrity was wonderful then, and it is wonderful now regardless of room category. I have more than 25 Celebrity cruises under my belt, and would certainly not have done that if it was not good enough without Aqua Class. I cannot imagine not booking a 14 day trip just because I could not get AQ:eek:. I would book it in a minute. IMHO Concierge Class is nice, but not worth much extra $$, especially on the S class ships (Solstice class) where the rooms are the same size as a regular balcony, or an AQ balcony for that matter. There are a few perks, but they are not of much value I feel. If the price is similar, and the location is better, pick Concierge. If it is a lot more or you cannot get a good room location, standard veranda is just fine.

[wallie5446]

When we cruise Princess we book one of the Emerald deck mini's, toward the Aft. To get the same size cabin on X you have to go to a a Sky Suite. The 3 you asked about are all 194 sq ft. no difference in the cabin size. There are no different or amazing something about Aqua or CC over a reg balcony. None, nada. You do get more points in your Capt Club account for booking Aqua or CC.

 

Only, the only benefit, IOHO of Aqua, is Blu as your dinning room instead of the MDR. Is Blu wort $700,$800, or $1000 more per person? Not to us. But the menu is a tad different and on formal evenings you are not asked to dress up to get in. Most tables are for 2-4 but close enough together to easily chat with those next to you.

 

Bottom line for us, unless the cost is $200-$300 difference, the quality in Blu is not worth it. In Nov for our 11 day we are in a 1A on deck 8, $1280 pp less than a CC, on deck 9, and $1310 less pp than Aqua on deck 11. The MDR on Reflection last Nov, was a lot better that the MDR on the Ruby in 2012.

 

The speciality restaurants on X make the Crown Grill look like a Steak an Shake! Ok, not that different, but not far off:D

 

Don't 'not book' a Celebrity cruise simply because you can't get Blu.

 

ps: our first Princess was in 1992, and Celebrity in 1993.

Edited July 18, 2014 by wallie5446

[stipmom]

I have been in all the cabins you asked about, our last two in Aqua class. For our next cruise we booked a regular verandah and plan to just eat in specialty restaurants for most of the nights. For us, Aqua was great the first time, not so special the second.

[fatbaldbloke]

Having upgraded to AC on our last cruise we found it ticked all the right boxes for us. The main attraction is Blu although we did have a couple of nights in MDR as well. Not overly fussed about the Persian Garden or the afternoon snacks but we did like the choice of pillows that were available.

[british betty]

We've also been in all three and we love Blu and used the Persian Gardens a lot on our recent TA which of course has lots of sea days. On a port intensive cruise, we certainly wouldnt have used it so much.

 

Our next cruise is in AQ because the price was right, but then all of the cruises we have chosen were (partly) because the price was right.

 

I was only discussing yesterday with my nearest and dearest ;) that perhaps we should consider an 1A or maybe a sweet 16 in the future and spend the difference on the speciality restaurants which we have never done in the past.

 

Decisions decisions, but it gives you something to look forward to.

 

Whatever you chose, I doubt you'll be disappointed :)

[dorisis]

Book a suite. Your butler can get reservations for Blu and there are lots of nice perks that go with a suite.

[Avalon35]

Thank you for thoughts. Also, how do we know which cabins have the larger balcony? And if the bed is by the closet / bathroom as we don't want the bed by the balcony. I believe the sweet 16s are forward? We don't want to be forward- we want mid ship or towards aft. I have looked at the s class Eclipse cabin stickies, but general guidance will help and then I can search if the specific cabin is listed as available. I just want to be prepared if Celebrity comes out with a good deal. We usually book directly then transfer to TA. But the Celebrity website seems a tad difficult, particularly with respect to finding cabins available...

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[wallie5446]

The cabins that are on the 'angle/slant' of the hump ( this is where the floor plan justs out a bit) are the ones that have a tad more room on them then the standard 54 sq ft.

[phoenix_dream]

I believe the Sweet 16's are only on M class, not on S class (which is the class of the Eclipse). To my knowledge only the cabins on the hump have bigger balconies, within the veranda, concierge, or Aqua Class cabins. There may be a suite size with bigger balconies but I never stay in them so I can't comment.

 

You really do need to search the sticky to find out where the beds are on S class ships. They do alternate, so if you figure it out on one you can manually determine where the bed is on the others by scanning down room by room if you can't find the specific cabin listed. I also understand that all veranda size cabins that hold 3 or more have the bed by the closet - at least I read that somewhere.

[Doctor G]

I know that I am in the minority, but I did not care for the evening meals in Blu. I loved breakfast, but not dinner. It was certainly not worth the extra cost to me.

 

Carolyn

[CathyCruises]

Just go into the Celebrity website and under "Plan your Cruise" click on Ships, then the one you are interested in, then Deck Plans.

 

The large balconies are the ones before and after the bumped out part--the ones that are on an angle--and they can be various categories depending on which floor they're on--standard veranda, CC or AQ. The ones with the bed by the bath have the square and/or triangle (indicating room for 3-4 pax). The cabins alternate bath/balcony/bath/balcony so once you determine the area you want to be in, just look for the squares and count from there--really easy to do.

 

Hope this helps.

[wallie5446]

 

-the ones that are on an angle--and they can be various categories depending on which floor they're on--standard veranda, CC or AQ. The ones with the bed by the bath have the square and/or triangle (indicating room for 3-4 pax).

 

We are in 8226 on the Equinox this year. It is on the starboard side forward facing angle of the hump. And a tad bigger.

[CathyCruises]

We are in 8226 on the Equinox this year. It is on the starboard side forward facing angle of the hump. And a tad bigger.

 

Is that a question?

 

I was responding to Avalon35s request for information. . .

[wallie5446]

Is that a question?

 

I was responding to Avalon35s request for information. . .

 

I was doing the same as you. By telling her our location she can look at the deck plan as you suggested, and see where we are located, then have a better idea as to what we all mean by 'the angle of the hump'.

[royalcruz]

There are also larger balconies on the angled area of the forward section of the ship. These are nice too because they face the back of the ship and have less wind.:) The most forward are bigger than the ones next to them but both are bigger than regular balconies.

[pier]

I know that I am in the minority, but I did not care for the evening meals in Blu. I loved breakfast, but not dinner. It was certainly not worth the extra cost to me.

 

Carolyn

 

I agree! Some of the dinners we had in Blu were so disappointing that we started eating in the MDR and were much happier. The meals were excellent. Also, getting to our cabin was inconvenient. We were on the Infinity and had to walk from one end of the boat to the other to get there.

 

We're going on another cruise in a few weeks, and we're going Concierge class.

[DonnaK]

Aqua class aside....

 

 

Right now, Concierge class is less expensive than a regular balcony on the cruise I am considering (M class) due to a resident special. What are the advantages of concierge class? What if we have multiple cabins booked, but only one is concierge class - what can the people in that cabin do that the others can't? And, is there a difference in gratuities?

Edited July 19, 2014 by DonnaK

[wallie5446]

Aqua class aside....

 

 

Right now, Concierge class is less expensive than a regular balcony on the cruise I am considering (M class) due to a resident special. What are the advantages of concierge class? What if we have multiple cabins booked, but only one is concierge class - what can the people in that cabin do that the others can't? And, is there a difference in gratuities?

There are no special things outside of the cabin. And no difference in grats. A Concierge cabin gets you an apple a day and an extra Capt Club point.

Edited July 19, 2014 by wallie5446

[jan-n-john]

Since many on this thread have mentioned the larger balconies on the hump, here's my question. We have booked various Celebrity trips, but have never yet been able to get one of those cabins. Everybody seems to know about them (well, lots of folks anyway), and they are always gone by the time we show up. How far in advance did those who have scored one book? Is there some sort of wait list if one comes available?